Caral, Peru: Connecting with the Tiny Town of Caral and A Memorable Mountain Sunset [Part 3]

After a wonderful afternoon visiting the ruins of Caral, we headed to the town of Caral to finally eat a well-deserved lunch. Then we headed to the brand new hostel and had a look around our surroundings.

The town itself looks as you’d expect it to – a quiet little town in the foothills of the Andes. This is more what you expect to see when you come to Peru to volunteer, rather than the dusty urban community of Huaycán!

The neighbors came out of their houses to meet these unusual foreigners hanging out in their quiet town. The children were extremely curious about us, and when one of the little girls pulled out her alphabet book to learn English, I asked if I could take some pictures of them!

The little boy could not get enough of seeing himself in the camera. So cute!

After hanging out with our neighbors for a bit, I headed inside to take pictures of the gorgeous sunset from the hostel’s balcony. I am obsessed with sunsets, and the one from Caral did not disappoint.

After the sunset, we headed back to one of the local eateries for dinner and a chat about the work our host was hoping to accomplish in Caral. Then we headed back to the hostel for a good night’s rest, since we had an early start planned the next day!

February 15, 2013

Caral, Peru: Visiting the Ancient Ruins of the Sacred City of Caral [Part 2]

After a long drive from Lima, we arrived at the archeological site of Caral. Our first stop was the workplace of the lead archeologist, Dr. Ruth Shady, so our host could talk to her about his new nonprofit, but she was not there. Luckily the view from the office was beautiful!

From there, we headed to ruins themselves. We had to wait a little bit for a guide to take us around the ruins, and we got to admire the art competition being held among local schoolchildren in honor of the 18th anniversary of rediscovering the ruins. The kids were serious about their artwork!

Once we got our guide, we began our walk in the strong sun around the massive site of pyramids in this strangely beautiful landscape. The pyramids are in various states of restoration and study, and it was fascinating to listen to our guide explain the process. I can’t pretend to remember all the details of each individual building in order to share them here, but I learned a lot. I am so thankful I speak Spanish (and academic Spanish at that) so that I was able to fully appreciate the tour.

My favorite photo of the ruins!

You can see here why the pyramids were not uncovered for so long – they fade into the landscape of this barren land.

These flags are intended to keep birds away, but they don’t work as well anymore, the birds have caught on!

Pyramid in the process of restoration, and two in the distance!

I love this shot – the guide explained that they photograph and mark every stone of the falling walls so that they can meticulously restore it just as it would have been thousands of years ago, except using a stronger binder. You can see one of the unrestored walls tilting down in the center of the photo. Amazingly detailed work!

The ruins look otherworldly in this clean, empty landscape.

Our guide hard at work, while his coworkers continue to ready the place for the anniversary!

View of the pathway to more pyramids and the geometry of this marker lining up with the pyramid

They believe this to be an administrative site because it is an unlivable landscape, though you can see the fertile valley just on the other side of the river, where people must have resided. This other structure is believed to be one of the most important buildings of the complex.

Here you see a pyramid which has not yet been fully excavated, and the foothills of the Andes.

Here’s a view of the flat landscape as well as the work to be done everywhere!

I hope the photographs convey the fascinating beauty of this site. I am really happy that Caral is now much more accessible for visitors, because it gives you a great insight into the work of archeology and the different ancient cultures of Peru that deserve more exploration by tourists and travelers like me. After visiting this and reading some great books on Peru (more on those later!), I cannot wait to explore northern Peru and some of the major sites of other ancient cultures!!

After visiting the archeological site of Caral, it was time to move on to see how people live in the nearby town of Caral. That’ll be in the next post! 🙂

February 12, 2013

Caral, Peru: Traveling from Lima to the Ruins of Caral Via Caleta Vidal [Part 1]

In October, after a few months of volunteering, some great treks, and many weekends spent in Lima with friends, I had the opportunity to visit the ancient city of Caral, located nearly 200km north of Lima, with some of my fellow volunteers. The owner of a Lima hostel had recently started a new hostel in the town of Caral outside this ancient, hard-to-visit city and was trying to get support for a nonprofit he had also created. He offered to take us to Caral in his 4×4 so that we could explore the ancient city, stay in the new hostel, see the work he is trying to do, and meet the local kids of Caral.

Caral is believed to be the oldest city of the Americas, a settlement established 5000 years ago. The diligent work of Dr. Ruth Shady led to the pyramids being uncovered not even 20 years ago, and they continue to be studied by Dr. Shady and her team. The easiest way to visit Caral is through a tour or using a private car, but it’s possible to get there on bus and stay in the town.

We left Lima early in the morning, heading north on the Panamerican Highway. Our first stop was at giant field of strawberries, where we got to try the delicious fruit and take some with us at only 15 soles a pallet!

From there, we continued on north until we reached Caleta Vidal, a small town on the coast right before the inland turn-off to Caral. It was nice to see the coast again up so close, along with all the sea creatures, like crabs, seagulls, and starfish!

Colorful fishing boats to liven up the grey morning!

After enjoying the coast, we began the trip inland. The 18th anniversary celebration was held the following weekend, so we saw everything being spruced up. Along the way, we also stopped to appreciate the crops growing in the fertile land of this region.

And then we continued on to the main event: seeing the pyramids of Caral for ourselves…in the next post!

February 8, 2013

Day Trip from Lima: Chosica and Catarata de Huanano in Surco

An easy escape from the noise of Lima is the small city of Chosica. Chosica is well-known for its sunny climate year-round. In the South American winter, it was nice to see and feel the sunshine! Chosica has a pleasant canal and a lot of greenery to lift the spirits.

Picturesque canal located in the “tourist district” of Chosica

Statue near Parque Echenique and the main park/plaza, perfect for relaxing

While Chosica is pretty in its own right, it’s also a required stop en route to Matucana and San Jerónimo de Surco, a town from which you can hike to more waterfalls: Catarata Huanano and Cataratas de Palacala. When I visited in August, it ended up being too late in the day to begin the longer hike to the Cataratas de Palacala, so we decided to go see Catarata Huanano.

The first thing that is striking about Surco is all the greenery, as well as the predominance of cacti and other desert plants. The landscape is similar to that of Matucana, but unique in its own way. On the way, you can also see the ruins of Huanano (not pictured), which I don’t know much about. It’s just proof that ruins are everywhere in Peru.

And then here’s the waterfall!! Small but attractive, and a nice place to stop and have a snack. 🙂

But for me, the best part of the hike was seeing the beautiful sunset on the way back. There was actually a little bit of rain on the descent, which led to the atmospheric clouds. Beautiful, right?

It’s so nice having these places as low-budget escapes. I need to make an effort to get back there soon!

February 4, 2013

Day Trips from Lima: Matucana and the Catarata de Antakallo

One of the fringe benefits of my year-long volunteering position is the proximity to all the cool things there are to do in Peru, especially in the area around Lima. Most people who visit Lima as tourists or travelers use it as a transportation hub for getting around to major sites around Peru or as another major city to explore. By living here, we find out about other types of day trips that the average foreigner just doesn’t get to see.

For example, Matucana. Matucana is a small town located about three or four hours outside of Lima on the Carretera Central (the main highway). To get to Matucana, you first must get to Chosica via the “Chosicano,” a frequent combi bus that runs through Lima and then up the Carretera Central, or a colectivo, or shared taxi. Chosica is a small city often used as an escape from Lima or the surrounding towns (like Huaycán), since it tends to be sunny year-round. From Chosica, you take another colectivo to Matucana.

After being in dusty Huaycán, the drive through these beautiful mountains with all their greenery and running rivers is especially refreshing. When you arrive to Matucana, you arrive to the quiet plaza, where you can eat a snack or get some treats for the hike, as well as visit the tourist information center. They’re always surprised but happy to see foreigners there, since I imagine not many pass through unless they are living, working, or volunteering around here.

The main attraction in Matucana is the trek to the Catarata de Antakallo (a waterfall), though it is also known for its great climate (sunny in the Peruvian winter, great for growing different fruits and vegetables). You walk along a path up through the town and then begin the fairly steep hike up and then across to the waterfall. I went on the hike twice within my first two months in Peru, and the second time I found the trek much easier as my legs had grown accustomed to walking up and down the foothills of Huaycán! The photos that follow are a combination of both trips. Each time I was constantly surprised by how beautiful the Andean sierra is. I love the Andes. 🙂

Route to our destination!

One of the murals and some detail along the path through the town

Companions along the road!

Views of the path on the way up and the terracing all around

Cabeza de León (Lion’s Head) and some cows roaming around…

The changing colors of the mountains and me along the way…

Views of farming terraces and the town below, along with the foliage on the path

Almost there! and a modelesque pose…

Finally! The waterfall at the end of our hike!

My hiking companions and me on the way back

Views of the landscape and a sheep dog

The roads of Matucana and the municipality building reminding us of where we were

As you can see, this short trek has lots of beautiful views. It’s a calm retreat from the craziness of the city. Perhaps I’ll go visit one more time while I’m here!